Metal-melting furnace



G. W. McKEE.

METAL MELTI-NG FURNACE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV-12.1917.

Patented Jan. 13,1920.

4 SHEETS-SHEET l- G. W. McKEE.

METAL MELTING FURNACE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV..12. 1917.

1,328,236, Patented Jan. 13, 1920.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

wjwelzzzw www/w G. W. McKEE.

METAL MELTING FURNACE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. I2. 1917.

Patented Jan. 13,1920.

4 SHEETSSHEET 3.

G. W. McKEE.

MET-AL MELTING FURNACE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. [2. 1917.

Patented Jan. 13, 1920.

- may be melted and cast very GARNET W. MCKEEQ-OF ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS.

mumps/[Emma FURNACE.

Application filed November 12; 1917. Serial No. 201,541.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GARNET W. MCKEE, a subject of the King of GreatBritain, residing at Rockford, in the county of Win- .nebago and Stateof Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inMetal-Melting Furnaces, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to furnaces adapted for melting softmetals tobepoured, and has more particular reference to the melt:

ing of linotype metal and the pouring thereof into molds to cast pigssuitable for use v through with the legs removed and' only a in meltingpots of linotype machines. 1

' The melting furnaces heretofore provided" for this purpose areunsatisfactory in many respects, chiefly in that they are not as'economical and eflicient in their operation as is, desired. Too muchtime and labor is required in the operation of melting and pouring; andin some instances wherein an effort has been made to expedite thepouring by the provision of a series of movable molds, facilities arelacking for quick con.-

tinuous usage and safe operation.

I have, therefore, aimed primarily, to provide a melting furnace ofgenerally improved construction by which soft metals efficiently,economicallyand safely. 3

In furtherance of this aim, my invention contemplates various objects,certain of which will now be briefly mentioned. One object is to providefor heating the melting pot in a most'efficient manner and for properlyhousing the pot so as to convey away the gases resulting from the gasflames. Another object is to provide a construction by which the metalmaybe quickly and easily poured successively into a plurality of molds,the flow of metal being very accurately controlled by simplemanipulation of a movable spigot and a valve controlling member. Afurther object is to provide a valve and spigot structure. of simple andnovel design which will enable the metal to be delivered from the pot tothe spigot in an effectual manner, the spigot being readily removablefor cleaning and other purposes. Still another object is to pr vide forrapid and efficient cooling of themolds by constructing the bottom ofthe molds .in a manner peculiarly adapted for quick cooling and bycontinuously applying cold Specification of Letters Patent.

'bodying my improvements;

'the molds removed. 1 While my improvements are especially adapted to beused in printing establish- Patented J sin. 13., 1920.

when considered in connection with the ac v c-ompanying drawings, inwhichi -F 1gurel 1s aplan view of a furnaceem- 13, a vertical sectional'view therea water level in the mold cooling reservoir;

Fig. 6, a'sectional view taken substantially on the line 66 of Fig. 3,with the valve actuating member removed;

Fig. 7 a plan view of the furnace, partially in section; and

Fig. 8, a horizontal sectional view taken substantially on the line 88of Fig. 3 with ments for the purpose of melting and remelting linotypemetal and type slugs and casting pigs for the melting pot of a linotypemachine, it should be understood that the invention contemplates themelting and pouring of soft metals for various purposes well understoodin the use of such metals. Consequently, the drawings and. followingFig- 2, a side elevation of the funnace;

description illustrate only one practical em bodiment of my invention.

In the present instance, a suitable body and supporting structure forthe melting pot is provided, in the form of a cylindrical body 9 whichmay be of boiler plate metal, supported by legs 11. Theopen-top meltingpot 12 formed with a. flanged top rim 13 which rests on the top of thebody 9 so as to suspend the melting pot within the bod-y, is of lessdlameter than said body so that a' confined heating space 14 isestablished circumferentially about the pot throughout the entire lengththereof. Thus. the heat products arising from a' suitable burner,designated generally by character 15, positioned being had especially toFig. 3. The metal is drawn 01f through avalve-controlled out: v

below the pot will not be dissipated or passed away, but will beconfined and utilized to the fullest extent in heating the pot. Suitablemeans, such as small angle plates 16, may be employed to position thepot centrally within the body 9. This body may be heat insulated by theprovision on its interior of. an asbestos lining 17. p

In order that the gases arising from the products of combustion may beeffectually carried away and the melting pot may be inclosed during themelting process, I have provided a hood covering the top of the pot andconstructed to allow access thereto, and also to receive the risinggases from the heating space 14. The hood may be of sectionalconstruction, comprising a stationary back 18 circumscribing the body 9only at the back thereof and attached in spaced relation thereto bysuitable bolts 19, and a front movable section 21 hinged to the backsection and-shaped to allow an opening 22 at the front of the furnacefor a valve operating member described hereinafter. The rising gasespass upwardly in the space 14 through a plurality of openings 23 in therear wall only of the body 9 adjacent to its top, as shown in Fig. 7,and pass upwardly into the hood and thence through an outlet in its topand away through a suitable flue.

The heating means may be of suitable design, although I find that a gasburner serves the purpose very efiiciently and I have therefore, asmentioned above, provided a gas burner 15, supplied with gas through thepiping 24 and adapted to be lighted by the pilot light 25 which blows aflame through an opening in the body 9. The burner, its air mixing valveand lighter, may, of course,"be of any suitable construction; and in thepresent instance, I have omitted the gas openings from one sector of theburner, as shown in Fig. 8, so that the spigot through which the metalis poured may be ositioned directly above the sector without eingsubject to. injury by the heat, although as mentioned hereinafter, thespigot may be easily removed from the furnace during the period that themetal is being heated; if desired. .It will be manifest that metalplaced in-the pot through the opening afforded by the removable hoodsection will be melted by the application of heat from the burner. v

The means for drawing 'ofl' or 'pouririg the metal will now bedescribed, reference let in the bottom of the pot'anddelivered through"a spigotfor pouring. A simple tapered cylindrical valve 26fitsrevolubly in a casing 27 and is adapted, when oscillated, to openand close the outlet from the pot by movement-of its port 28 into andout of regis tration with the opening 29 in the casing.

spout. spigot is freely detachable from its supportin front of thefurnace.

The valve casing has a redueed threaded end 31 extending. throughthe'bottom of the pot, and a nut threaded on this end secures the casingin position, a gasket being interposed between the casing and the pot atthe inside thereof. This valvemay be manually operated from the front ofthe furnace by means of a hand lever 33 projecting through the opening22 and secured at its inner end to a-rock shaft 34 co-axial with thevalve 26,

rotatable at its upper end in a cross bar 35 secured to and spanning thetop of the melting pot, and shaped at its lower end to pro- Q vide asquare socket adapted to receive the square end of the valve.' It willbe manifest that by swinging the hand lever, 33 laterally, the valvewill be closed and opened, controlling the flow of metal from themelting pot, and if desired, the valve actuating 'means may be removedby simply withdrawing the rock shaft axially. "Upon the lower end 31 ofthe valve casing is threadedly mounted so as to be freely rotatablethereon, a spigot-carrying member designated generally by referencecharacter 37. This, as shown, is shaped to receive and position thereceiving end of a spigot 38 directly below the outlet of the pot sothat its ends at the point 42 onthe member 37 and engaging behind theedge 43 thereof, is supported in an inclined manner as shown, so thatthe metal will flow freely to the By reason of this construction the ingmember. To remove the spigot, its outer end may be raised so as towithdraw its inner end from the edge 43, whereupon the spigot may befreely withdrawn lengthwise from its supporting member and through theopening 39. The supporting member 37, it will be seen, pivotallysupports the spigot," sothat the delivery end thereof, manipulated bymeans of the handle 44, may be swung laterallyto successively pour anumber of laterally spaced molds set The-operation may be performed veryeasily and quickly, since the operator guides the spigot with one handand with the other moves the valve lever 33,

so that the metal may be started and stopped atwill.

Coming nowcto the molds into which the metal is pouredfiit will be seenby reference to Figs. 4 and 7 that I have in the presentinstanceillustrated a means for supporting three'molds, eachconstructed-to cast three pigs suitable for use in the small meltingpots of linotype -machines. It should be understood, however, that theinvention is in no way limited to this number of molds or to theparticular number of pigs to be cast by each mold, since these might bevaried accordingto special requirements. However, the arrangementillustrated has been found particularly satisfactory and efficient andis especially rendered soand made possible in view of the employment ofa novel cooling means, which will be resently described. open-topreservolr 45 mounted on the front of the furnace body just below theopening 39-, as shown, is constructed to support 'a plurality, three inthe present instance, of removable molds, designated generally by 46.Each mold com prises a marginal portion 47 adapted to rest on the topsupporting surface of the reservoir, a handle extension 48 by means ofwhich the mold may be lifted'into and out of position and convenientlyhandled, and the mold body proper which depends below "the marginalportions 47 and is shaped to provide two longitudinal partitions 49dethe shape of the inside of the mold, as shown.

plainly in Fig. 4. Thus, when the bottom of the mold is immersed incoldwater contained in the reservoir a large under-surface will beexposed to the water, so that when the metal is poured it will be quiterapidly and uniformly cooled by the efie t of the cold water on thislarge area. t will be especially noted that the cooling effect is felton the sides and ends of each block and centrally along its core, byreason of the ridged center 51. A greater cooling eflect is obtained byinitially discharging thecold water directly against the underside ofthe molds from jets or nozzles positioned di rectly beneath and in closeproximity tothe molds. A suitable means for this purpose consists of aseries of nozzles 52, one being positioned beneath each mold in themanner shown so that the water discharging from each nozzle strikes thatportion of each mold compartment which is heated most pipe 53 passingthrough the bottom of the reservoir and joined toia main water sup--quickly. These nozzles having a plurality of discharge outlets may be ofany suitable construction, and in the present instance, are formed ofordinary pipe fittings. Each nozzle receives its supply from a centralply pipe 54, as shown. The water-is maintained at a" given level, suchfor exampleas illustrated in Figs. 4 and- 5, by an overflow drain 55,the function of which is obvious.

In the use of my improvements, the metal in the pot is heated to thedesired temperature by the gas burner, the spigot being either removedor moved to its extreme left hand limit during the melting process so asnot to become unduly heated. A continuous circulation-of water ismaintained, so that the molds will be maintained in a cooled conditionand no time ne d be lost a in waiting for molds to cool. T e operator,by manipulation of'the spigot and valve lever 33, may successively pourthe molds I as described above. Since the metal cools very quickly underthe influence of the special cooling means, it will be manifest that 'anoperator may in quick succession recast the molds until the supply ofmetal is exhausted Without any danger of the molds becoming heated tosuch an extent as to it cause splashingand spatteringof the water,

such as occurs in the use of metal furnaces of other constructions.Consequently, the

advantages following from the continuouscirculation of water, thespecial arrangement and manner in which the cold water is supplied, andthe special construction of the molds are extremely desirable andeffectually serve to promote not only efficiency in operationbutuniformity in the shape and 4 size of the resultant pigs.

I claimr' f 1. A melting furnace of the character described, comprisinber passing througIi the bottom thereofrig idly secured thereto andhavin a-Valve controlled passage through whic metal may be deliveredfrom the pot, a spigot-carrying member pivotally mounted on the firstnamed member, and a spigot detachably mounted on said pivoted member andadapted to receive metal from said passage and a melting pot, a mem';

tobe swung laterally atits free end to'deliver the metal at laterallyspaced points.

2. In a melting furnace of the character described, a melting pot, amember extending through the bottom wall of themelting pot and having aport through which molten metal is adapted to be delivered from the pot,a valve for closing and opening said -,port and operable from theexterior of the pot, a spigot, and a 'member pivotally mounted on saidextended end of the port- {containing member and shaped to detach-,abl'y receive andsupport the spigot.

, 3. In a melting furnace, a melting pot, a valve-carrying )memberpassing through the bottom of the melting pot and having a tapered porttherethrough, a tapered valve seated in said port, means for operatingthe valvefrom the exterior of the pot, a sp1got- I carrymg memberrotatably mounted on said valve-carrying member to turn about a verticalaxis, and a spigot detachably mounted on said spigot-carrying member.

4. In a melting furnace of the character described, a melting othaving adelivery outlet, a spigot-carrying member mounted to turn about avertical axis, and a spigot resting intermediate its ends upon saidmember and having an upper part engaged behind a part of said member insuch manner as to hold the spigot in operative position spigot and saidmember, whereby the spigot is supported in operative position on saidmember and is detachable therefrom by movement of the spigot relativelyto said member out of said interlocking engagement. I

6. In a melting furnace of the character described, a melting pot havinga bottom opening, a member below said opening mounted to turn about avertical axis, an

a spigot on said member having an inner end arranged to-receive metalthrou h said opening in the pot and an outer d elivery end, the spigotbeing so mounted on said member as to be pivotal upon and with re.

spect thereto about an axis intermediate the ends of the spigot, suchpivotal movement bringing the spigot into and out of opera tive positionon said member and When in inoperative position permitting free detachment of the spigot from said member.

7. In a melting furnace of the character described, a melting pot havinga delivery outlet, a member pivotally mounted to,turn about a verticalaxis and having a spigotreceiving socket, and a spigot having an endshaped for insertion into said socket Where by the spigot is supportedby said member in position to receive metal through said outlet from themelting pot, and means operative between saidmember and the spigot forholding said parts in cooperative relation and permitting quickdetachment and removal of the spigot from the member only by adisengaging movement of the spigot away from its operative position.

GARNET W. MoKEE.

